Hi,

About an hour ago a little brat badged my merc. This is the third time it has happened to me and, needless to say, I'm rather pissed.

I'm not really interested in removable stars which can be taken out when parking the car in the street. However, I'll welcome any suggestions (including ways of finding the culprits).

They left a kind of refashioned coat hanger hanging out of the socket. An idea: is it not possible to run some kind of circuit through the star so that when it is touched by another piece of metal an alarm is triggered? Or is there another alarm which achieves the same result? Ideas/suggestions please.

Thanks,

David Rayment

Yes, there are momentary contact switches that can be installed against the underside of the 'star'. These work much like a door switch... When the star is pulled from its socket, the existing alarm system will think that a door is opened and trigger the alarm.

You can find these switches at most all electronics places that have alarms, and can be installed yourself in minutes. :)

Hope this helps, and I hope you find the kids. Nothing upsets me more than children or adults that have no respect for other's property.

Good Luck,

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William
76 240D - 545K miles
78 300D - 200K+ miles

Too bad you couldn't hook it up to some 220 and give them their shock of a lifetime.

(hehehehehe) :D



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03/83 300D 184k
07/73 280 160k

Ahh. Finally a topic I can help with! :-)
Do not use the electric shock method, you open yourself up for a serious lawsuit... There is a car alarm I used to sell called an "Invisibeam" that would sense when someone was standing too close to the car(selectable distance), and issue a verbal warning (user selectable). If the person didn't back off, it would either countdown or sound off (user selectable). I am sure they are still available, but if you have problems finding them in your area, shoot me an email and I will call the wholesaler I used to deal with. Installation is difficult for this kind of an alarm, and I would leave it to a qualified installer.

Tom Johnson
Dallas Texas
'85 Euro 280se
W126 / M110 / 5spd

Many thanks William, Larry and Tom.

I'll think I'd rather they were scared away by sound than shocked by electricity!! So, I think I'll look for the right kind of alarm and see if I can hook up some kind of keyless entry system at the same time.

Thanks again,

David Rayment.

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1984 300D 235000 kms
Sydney, Australia.

David,

Try this link

http://www.clifford.com/g4


Radioman is right about the alarm. Look for an alarm(brand names like Clifford, Alpine should have it)feature called Proximity Sensor, which is exactly Radioman mentioned above. It detects close movement to your car. If they get too close, it will give warning chirk sound or sound the alarm at once(some better one I have see, it even speaks to you. I have seen one Viper with Clifford, it gives "Warning, you are too close to this vehicle, please walk away or the alarm will sound" message. Kinda cool).

Check it with your local stores. But ALWAYS have it professionally installed. Oh, and always have backup battery for it.. :)

P.S. Always hide the alarm horn. Professionally installed alarm will have horns hide in firewall/front fender, which will give theft a hard time to diable the unit.

Andy Kuo

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<UL TYPE=SQUARE>
<LI>1992 Mercedes-Benz 400SE
<LI>Pearl Grey/Black Leather
</UL>
ICQ#26950002
Mercedes Owners ICQ ActiveList ID#61730549
Mercedes S-Class Page
http://drive.to/akry
http://akry.homestead.com

[This message has been edited by akry (edited 05-10-2000).]

Yep Andy,
The talking one is the Invisibeam. It warns by saying "Step back. Step back or I will sound my alarm". If you have it setup to give them a little time, it will give a verbal countdown before the alarm goes off. If not, the alarm goes off immediatley after the warning, or you can set it up to give no warning at all. Pretty cool idea IMHO!

Tom

Look here for some alarm info. Directed Electronics manufacturers or markets 90% of all alarms (Viper, Wasp, Invisibeam, Excalibur, Carbine, etc) so nearly all of the accesories will work with any of these brands. Look halfway down the second page for the module that controls the Mercedes locks. Most alarms can be installed by a competent individual, but the Invisibeam calibration and setup is even beyond me and I used to sell the things. One thing to note is that Invisibeam gave up on support for helping customers install their product back in 88 or 89 and will only talk to the installers at certified Invisibeam dealers.
http://www.invisibeam.com http://www.autotechs.com/alarm/dei/glossary.htm


Tom

You may not like this but just giving you another option. You can get a flat chrome plug that replaces your hood star. I think Precision auto sells them.

Mike

I would like to get an Invisibeam alarm I had one before and loved it. hit me gr8tdave@comcast.net Please......

you do know that he posted that 8 years ago, right?

Gotta love it ........... "Hit me" wasn't even Hip lingo yet........

Not to mention that those talking alarms are really annoying!